Unlike other regular travel routes, this tour is definitely tailor-made for those people who is interested in Chinese culture and history. Except for visiting three must-go cities - Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai, it also takes you to visit Datong, Mount Wutai, Taiyuan and Pingyao old city. Offering dynamic knowlegde about Chinese history and colorful image of China landscapes, this tour spans over lots of relics about various religions and ancient civilization, as well as beautiful mountian with natural views.

Day 1 Arrive in Beijing May you have a good journey to Beijing, and our guide will meet you outside the customs of Beijing Airport after you clear the customs, and then transfer you to the downtown hotel. The rest of the day is flexible for your will, have a rest or take a walk near the hotel.

Day 2 Beijing After having breakfast at hotel, you will visit the Tiananmen Square this morning to start your Beijing tour. Strolling round the large square is very enjoyable where you will see Beijing with ancient and modern elements, then walk north to the world-famous Forbidden City. As the largest and best-preserved imperial palace in China, it vividly indulges us with a whole impression of the royal life. Also you can see lots of national treasures in Treasure House and Clock & Watches House of the Forbidden City. Later you will be driven to appreciate Chinese featured royal park - Summer Palace, which boasts of typical Chinese architecture and splendid landscapes. At night, Beijing Opera show or Kungfu show can be optionally appreciated.

Day 3 Beijing After having breakfast at hotel, you will have an excursion to the Badaling Great Wall, which is regarded as the most popular section of China Great Walls. It is also the best-preserved section, built during the Ming Dynasty. Then you will go to the most famous tomb of Ming Tombs - Changling, it is the largest in scale and is completely preserved, inhumed the fourth emperor of Ming Dynasty. Also you will visit the Sacred Road of the tombs, which was originally built to lead to the Changling mausoleum. Later while driving back to downtown Beijing, you will stop by the Bird's Nest (Olympic National Stadium) and Water Cube (National Aquatics), to view the unique constructions and take some photos.

Day 4 Beijing After breakfast, you will head for Temple of Heaven, where the Emperor of the Ming and Qing dynasties had been worshiped heaven and pray for good harvests for several hundred years. Nowadays, it serves as a public park. And lots of local people would come here for doing morning exercises. Thus you can see many old people playing Taichi in the early morning. Later you will explore Beijing Hutong by rickshaw to know more about the life and culture of ordinary Beijing people. The visiting of South Luogu Lane can provide you with a distinctive travelling experience compared to other attraction. Lama Temple is the last thing that you will visit this day. It is said that this temple is reputed as the Buddhist temple as well as Buddhist museum of the highest standard in China. And Uniquely you can take a glance at Tibetan buddhism here.

Day 5 Beijing - Datong After breakfast at hotel, you will be transferred to Beijing Railway Station for the train to Datong, with comfortable soft-sleeper, the whole journey takes about six hours, and our Datong tour guide will meet you at the exit of Datong Railway Station, later escorting you to check in at Datong downtown hotel.

Day 6 Datong In the morning, you will visit Huayan Monastery of Datong, which was named after the Huayan sect of Buddhism. And it is the largest and most perfectly preserved temple of the Liao (916-1125) and Jin (1115-1234) dynasties in China. Uniquely its architecture, sculptures, murals are rare forms of art known to China's Liao Dynasty. Then you will go on to visit a must-see in Datong - the Nine-Dragon Screen, which is three times larger than the one in Beihai Park, Beijing. According to the historical record, it was built for the Prince Hongwu, the 13th son of the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 AD). And there is a interesting story behind this screen, awaiting you to discover. Last but not least, you will see the No.1 must-see in Datong - the stunning Yungang Caves. Few words can be used to describe the overwhelming feeling when you just stand in the front of these giant Buddha statues. It is far far different to see them on the spot from in the photos, videos or other medias.

Day 7 Datong - Mt. Wutai You will continue to visit two famous attractions of Datong before heading for the next destination - Mt. Wutai. Firstly for appreciating the highlights of Datong, how can we miss the Hanging Temple? It is definitely an architecture wonder in the world, even more spectacular than Leaning Tower of Pisa. Have you got the guts to climb it? Then you will shift to visit to Wooden Pagoda of Ying County, another construction miracle. It is also named the Pagoda of Fogong Temple, which has survived several large earthquakes throughout the centuries. Amazing! After you finished all attractions in Datong, you will be transferred to Mt. Wutai by 3 hours' drive. Without worries, our tour guide will arrange everything for you along the trip. After reached the hotel, you would have a good rest and make full preparation for the next day's visit.

Day 8 Mt. Wuati - Taiyuan Wutai Mountain, literally meaning "five terrace mountain", is one of the Four Sacred Mountains in China Buddhism. Although Wutai Mountain hasn't got vast popularity among home and abroad, you will be surprised and impressed by its breathtaking sceneries and strong Buddhist cultural atmosphere. It is a must-go place combining beautiful landscapes with Buddhist culture. After several hours' seeing, you will take about 3 hours to Taiyuan city in the afternoon. Then our tour guide will help you to check-in and arrange other things for you.

Day 9 Taiyuan - Pingyao After breakfast, we will drive to Pingyao Ancient Town. Before we getting there, three attractions are arranged along the journey. The first one is Jinci Temple, that is a historical and cultural site gathering precious ancient architecture, sculptures, fresco and steles. You can get a feeling of ancientry from those ancient sculptures. The second place you will stop by is Shuanlin Temple. With a history of about 1,400 years, the temple consists of ten large and small halls, and the sutra chanting hall and the monks' rooms. You will be deeply impressed by Chinese Buddhist culture here. Qiao's Compound, marking your last visit before entering Pingyao, offers you a whole picture of what Chinese rich family's life was like in old times. Later we will check in a very featured guesthouse located in Pingyao, then you could have a rest and put down luggages in your room. The rest of this day is totally in your hand, thus you could stroll around the town with your camera, just immerse yourself in this picturesque old town, and experience Chinese ancient classic life. Remarkably, in the September of every year, the International Photography Festival holding in the Town, features traditional Chinese themes, inspiring and invigorating the photography professionals and enthusiast from home and abroad.

Day 10 Pingyao - Xi'an Today you will start to explore Pingyao Old Town in details with our tour guide. As an United Nations World Cultural Heritage, Pingyao Old Town combines several tourist attractions, offering you a whole impression of nornal people's life of Qing and Ming Dynasty. You could overlook the whole town on the City Wall, then have a stroll on the traditional Ming-Qing Street, where have been preserved as attraction sites and museums. Lots of traditional novelties and delicious local snacks can be found here. Besides, Ancient County government office, Ri Sheng Chang Exchange Shop and China Traditional Biaoju (Ancient Security Company, providing escorting and guarding service) permit you know more about Chinese History both in ecomony and politics. In the afternoon, after you finished all sightseeing of the town, you will be escorted to Railway Station to leave for Xi'an by train. It takes about 8.5 hours with comfortable soft-sleeper.

Day 11 Xi'an After being picked up to check in Xi'an downtown hotel and having breakfast there, you will head for world-famous Terracotta Warriors to start wonderful Xi'an tour, perhaps you have seen them many times on TV or magazines before, but it's totally different to see them with your own eyes. After that, you will set foot in the Muslim culture at the Great Mosque, savoring the special blend of Chinese & Muslim cultures and feel the soul of the broad-minded ancient Xi'an. Hanging around the Muslim Quarter nearby the Drum Tower is another way to experience the local Muslim life. Various featured snacks & crafts shops are surely a great feast. At night, Xi'an Tang Dynasty Music and Dance show plus Chinese dumpling banquet can be optionally tried, kindly see details in [Add on] section.

Day 12 Xi'an - Shanghai After breakfast at hotel, the first spot you will visit is Small Wild Goose Pagoda. Located in the central axis of Xi'an, it was built in the year 707 A.D during the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Unlike the grand Big Wild Goose Pagoda, it is dainty and exquisite in its appearance. Regarded as an important cultural relic, it is one of the remaining symbols of ancient Chang'an. Later you can deeply explore the past Xi'an in many fields by seeing Shaanxi Historical Museum, where you can get more knowledge about Chinese national treasures and other precious cultural relics. When tour ends, you will transferred to Xi'an airport for the fly to the next destination - Shanghai. Our Shanghai tour guide will meet you at airport and send you to the downtown hotel.

Day 13 ShanghaiNow you will start to visit the biggest city of China - Shanghai, which definitely offers many lures. Begin from Yuyuan Garden and Yuyuan Market, you will appreciate Chinese garden construction and know more about Shanghai local people. Then with a stroll from Nanjing Road to the Bund, you will be impressed by Modern Shanghai amazingly compared with Xi'an. Later you can view the whole city at the highest floor of Oriental Pearl TV Tower, and know about the development of Shanghai with a following visit to Shanghai Municipal History Museum at the pedestal of the tower. At night, Shanghai Acrobats Show can be optionally appreciated.

Day 14 Depart Shanghai Before you leaving Shanghai, you can get a deep impression about Shanghai city's development at Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall. This hall was built to show the achievement of Shanghai city planning and construction. With many functions, such as exhibition, reference, research, communication, recreation and entertainment, here you can understand the past changes and the future blueprint of Shanghai and enjoy yourself with advanced exhibiting technology. Later the tour guide will take you to Shanghai International Airport for your return flight.